Paper Talk, April 20, 2013

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More and more people - including university graduates and those with postgraduate qualifications - are joining the construction industry to become steel bar benders, attracted by rising salaries, according to the Hong Kong Bar-Bending Contractors Association. In one case, a 23-year-old computing graduate from Polytechnic University decided to quit his job as a programmer to become a blue-collar construction worker. He said he expected his salary to rise to about HK$30,000 per month in a couple of years. He added that if he stayed in the information technology industry, it could take another seven years before he is able to earn the same money.

Monday, Sing Tao Daily

Sports park planned for Ma On Shan golf course

The government was said to have plans to build a large-scale sporting park on a 23.5-hectare site near the Wu Kai Sha MTR station, Ma On Shan, to provide facilities that are hard to find in urban areas, such as pitches for baseball and cricket. The site on the waterfront is now used by the Whitehead Club Golf Driving Range, and would be recalled for the project in three or four years.

Tuesday, Oriental Daily

Drug addict nabbed for stealing temple deity statues

A 40-year-old man from Nam Hang Pei, Yuen Long, was arrested following a tip-off from other villagers, on suspicion of stealing two deity figurines from the village's 47-year-old Tin Hau Temple in less than one month. The man was thought to have been under the influence of drugs at the time of the thefts.

Wednesday, The Sun

Prices of most school textbooks to go up 4pc

Prices of some primary and secondary school textbooks are to rise, and publishers will release their price lists next month. Sources said retail prices of "debundled" textbooks - those sold without teaching materials - would remain unchanged. They include textbooks for Chinese, English and mathematics for primary schools and junior secondary schools. This goes against the rationale behind forcing publishers to debundle the textbooks from teaching materials: it was aimed at bringing prices down. But prices of other textbooks not affected by the debundling policy would go up by an average of 4 per cent - the same as the inflation rate, sources said.

Thursday, Apple Daily

Pastor urges flock to steer clear of Occupy Central

Senior pastor Reverend Daniel Ng Chung-man, of the Evangelical Free Church of China Kong Fok Church, who has previously made pro-government remarks, quoted the Bible in a speech he gave early this month urging church-goers not to take part in the proposed Occupy Central movement. In the speech, Ng criticised those supporting the movement, saying their acts and remarks were "inciting the public" and "anti-society". And he said the "civil disobedience" fight for universal suffrage was a departure from Bible teachings.

Friday, Sing Tao Daily

McDonald's HK$28 rice meals will challenge local chains

McDonald's restaurants across the city are to launch rice meals with chicken or beef on Monday for HK$28 each. As well as rice, the meal will also include a soft drink and comes with vegetables, soup or dessert for an extra HK$8. A spokesman for the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants and Related Trades said the new product would be very competitive in the local fast-food market as the price was up to 30 per cent cheaper than similar meals already being offered by chains in the city. He said small restaurants in the vicinity of McDonald's branches would be the most affected by its new offerings.